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Posted 5/20/2017 3:47 PM (GMT 0)
So my son has been on mepron for over a week and has been doing surprisingly well on it. We just incorporated the azithromycin and it tore his stomach up. He can no longer take it after only 3 days. Can he continue to take the mepron without the antibiotic or will it not be as effective? Thinking of starting him on Buhner (which is what I'm on) alongside the Mepron. Is this a good plan? He is 10 years old...dealing with babesia. Thank you!
Posted 5/20/2017 4:03 PM (GMT 0)
I'm not knowledgeable enough to know what to tell you, but I will help you keep this bumped up!
Posted 5/20/2017 4:13 PM (GMT 0)
azithromycin is really tough on the gut. It really needs to be taken with food. How was he taking it? You may want him to eat some food first, then take it, then eat some more. It cramps up my stomach but the pain usually passes.
Posted 5/20/2017 4:29 PM (GMT 0)
Mepron is an anti-fungal anti-parasite drug and can be taken without the antibiotic (zithro).

Call your doctor and tell him of your son's reaction to the antibiotic. The doc may suggest another med. I had to eat a lot of crackers with antibiotics and eventually I just gave up. The nauseous and throwing up was too much and I went to herbs.
Posted 5/20/2017 5:21 PM (GMT 0)
Zithro is tough on the gut as others have said you can pair mepron with many other antibiotics. i've been on mepron on and off throughout a few years and i've done zithro, biaxin, cefdinir now pairing it with bactrim and minocycline so plenty of options for your doctor to go to something less impacting.
Posted 5/20/2017 5:23 PM (GMT 0)
No, Mepron should not be taken without an antibiotic. The antibiotic is used in part to prevent resistance.
Babesia needs to be hit with more than one 'killer' at a time to be effective.

The Dr. can prescribe you a different one to be taken. There is minocycline, Bactrim DS, Omnicef, and others.
Posted 5/23/2017 4:52 PM (GMT 0)
I am glad to hear that your son has been able to tolerate the Mepron so well.

I have taken many "Z-packs" for strep and sinus infections over the years (before I found out that I had Lyme) and sometimes the meds would upset my stomach and cause other GI issues. However, this would subside after 1 - 3 days.

Just a thought, but maybe it is the Mepron irritating the azithromyacin? Has your son been taking the Mepron with a fatty source for proper absorption? Mepron really upsets my stomach (diarrhea) if I don't take it with a spoonful of peanut butter.
Posted 5/23/2017 5:08 PM (GMT 0)

shotgun72 said...
I am glad to hear that your son has been able to tolerate the Mepron so well.

I have taken many "Z-packs" for strep and sinus infections over the years (before I found out that I had Lyme) and sometimes the meds would upset my stomach and cause other GI issues. However, this would subside after 1 - 3 days.

Just a thought, but maybe it is the Mepron irritating the azithromyacin? Has your son been taking the Mepron with a fatty source for proper absorption? Mepron really upsets my stomach (diarrhea) if I don't take it with a spoonful of peanut butter.

For what it's worth, for optimal absorption, you'll want to take your Mepron with much more fat than the 8g worth in a TBSP of peanut butter.
Posted 5/23/2017 5:45 PM (GMT 0)
Hmm that is interesting. The peanut butter I use has 15g of fat. I assumed it has been working well since my GI issues stopped after I incorporated the peanut butter with it.

Where did you get your info from? And what are you using as a fat source for the Mepron absorption?
Posted 5/23/2017 6:00 PM (GMT 0)
Could it be that the 15g is for 2 tbsp?

The fat really isn't for GI issues. If it helps for the GI issues, that's good, but Mepron has to be taken with fat because the fat increases absorption significantly (talking like a 4-fold increase in concentration when you eat ~40+ grams of fat:

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1365-2125.1994.tb04232.x/epdf

It's also outlined in the Mepron monograph.

I usually aim for about 40g of fat. I eat a lot of eggs and fatty meats. Not the healthiest, but sometimes I'll eat cured meats that are high in fat.

My go to when needed is still peanut butter, 3-4 tbsp.

I take the medication about 30-45 minutes after I begin my meal, as outlined in that paper.
Posted 5/23/2017 6:15 PM (GMT 0)
Looks like it is 16g for 2 tablespoons. I don't use an actual tablespoon for measuring, so I would estimate that I am getting 1.5 tablespoons.

The first week on Mepron, I was taking it with food and fatty foods as like what you described. The Mepron was going right through me. After trying it with the peanut butter, the issues cleared. If that wasn't going to work, Coconut oil was the next step. But that stuff is hard to stomach for me.

My doctor had originally suggested cottage cheese, but my other doctor has me on a diary free diet. I'm going to bring up the fat content next time I see the doc.
Posted 5/23/2017 6:16 PM (GMT 0)
I take it with a heaping TBSP of peanut butter, and a TBSP of coconut oil, then have a meal. I often will eat a chunk of cheese with it.

For breakfast - sometimes it's eggs with cheese...or oats with cashews and a splash of milk. (I'm probably a bit low for fat at this dosing)

Dinner is usually a salad with olive oil, some cheese, and meat.
Posted 5/23/2017 6:27 PM (GMT 0)
Wow. Maybe I will try adding in the coconut oil and see if I notice any changes.
Posted 5/23/2017 7:29 PM (GMT 0)
>>I take it with a heaping TBSP of peanut butter, and a TBSP of coconut oil

be very careful with the coconut oil. if you aren't used to it and has a few tablespoons you can cause symptoms similar to food poisoning. i did this (like an idiot) and everything was going right through me for 8 hours it was awful.
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